I won an iPod from Apple, or did I?

Hey, I think I just tone one of the iPod minis for purchasing a song at one of the 100,000 marks. Way cool.

However, the very paranoid person in me is just a little unsure. I bought the song yesterday and did my best at purchasing it based on the count up clock on Apple's home page. So, it all make sense I won 8) I got an e-mail saying I won and they want me to sign a form with my social security number and address. It makes all good sense that when you win something that they want the information as well as my signature that I'm not associated with Apple etc etc. I just get so many scams a day in my in-box that I worry that I'm being phished.

Am I paranoid? Has anyone else won something from Apple or got a scam e-mail from itunes?

Hey, I think I just tone one of the iPod minis for purchasing a song at one of the 100,000 marks. Way cool.

However, the very paranoid person in me is just a little unsure. I bought the song yesterday and did my best at purchasing it based on the count up clock on Apple's home page. So, it all make sense I won 8) I got an e-mail saying I won and they want me to sign a form with my social security number and address. It makes all good sense that when you win something that they want the information as well as my signature that I'm not associated with Apple etc etc. I just get so many scams a day in my in-box that I worry that I'm being phished.

Am I paranoid? Has anyone else won something from Apple or got a scam e-mail from itunes?

Call Apple, they have your phone # with your account so they should call AND email...but if they want you to reply in E-MAIL with the info, I say no, the risk is greater than the reward...but if it is a secure (128 SSL) site on the apple.com domain...it is likely lagit, although I would still call, they shouldnt need your SSN...

EDIT: they probably run the SSN to make sure you arent employeed by Apple/partners

They also need the SSN to report the winnings to the IRS for tax purposes.

True, but in this day and age what company in their right mind would want them in an e-mail...if I weregoing to the trouble of a contest like this, I would toss up an encrypted page and for good mesure, have the winner type a confermation ID from the email.

I googled the Fax number they gave me (to fax the signed form with the SS# - not e-mail) and the only link that came up was an Apple site (off firewire.org not apple.com). The site was for promoting iTunes song giveaways for corporations, they had to fax their forms in to the same number. So I think this sounds authentic enough for me. It's either an Apple number or the scam artists own firewire.org and have a really good Apple site up on their server.

I also e-mailed them with my color choice and work mailing address and requested some confrimation that this is legit. They replied with a phone number and person I can call to talk to. I may still do that on Monday, but I think the google results put most of my paranoid nightmares to rest.

I really should just enjoy the moment.

Not that I want to give the bad guys any more ideas, but if you have a few million e-mail addresses at your finger tips you can just fake an Apple e-mail and form and phish away. Your bound to hit some people that had bought some songs on iTunes and they think they win and send you there SS#, name, address, phone number and signature.

I just ran a whois on firewire.org just to double check and it appears to have been registered by Apple by the same registrar as apple.com.

So Congrats on your iPod

What color did you get?

Thanks for checking!

I'm getting green. I already own a 10Gb model that keeps me happy and just three weeks ago I bought my wife a 6Gb mini for her birthday. So get this act of decadence: I'm going to give the new mini to my 8 year old daughter! Spoiled brat. She doesn't know it yet and we're making her work for it. She has to earn 100 points (randomly given out by her overlord parents) to get something really cool that is a surprise. She also has to learn her multiplication tables up to 12 x 12 to her Father's satisfaction. Thanks Apple for furthering my daughter's eductation!

I just saw what the grand prize is. Wow. Sweet. But after some thought, other than the 10,000 song gift certificate, I think I would donate the rest to charity or work with Apple to donate it all to underpriveleged kids.

I just saw what the grand prize is. Wow. Sweet. But after some thought, other than the 10,000 song gift certificate, I think I would donate the rest to charity or work with Apple to donate it all to underpriveleged kids.

Cool deal, Carson. Green is probably what I would pick too. At the Apple store when my Dad won his iPod mini they asked him what color he wanted and some cute girl next to him said you should get blue! Now he is the proud owner of a blue iPod Mini.

I think its pretty cool that they let you pick your color instead of just moving the slower selling models.

Cool, my name up on apple.com. Off course this means that anyone on these forums who wants to know my real name can now figure it out. Guess I have to watch what i say in Political outsider a little more carefully.

OK I was desperate to find a song to download since I saw the counter approaching a 100k mark. It is not my usual taste in music, butI'm having a weird pop music of the 80's phase. My standard fare is Marillion, Fish, Hot Tuna, various rock bands of the 70's and 80's (ok I'm getting old), and some Hawaiian bands.

I actually don't care if you like my taste or not, I'm use to being out in left field on musical taste, but what's wrong with my name?